1. Technical Field
This disclosure relates generally to panels, systems and methods for mounting fiber optic connective devices within a rack or cabinet and, more particularly, to mounting panels/systems/methods that allow increased density without sacrificing performance. The disclosed mounting panels/systems/methods advantageously accommodate conventional fiber optic adapters.
2. Background Art
Wired and connected hardware are an integral part of a typical building telecommunications wiring system. In central offices, data centers and other wired buildings, fiber optic patch panels have become a necessary media to route connections between switches, servers, storage devices and the general office area. By “patching,” or temporarily creating a connection between physically mated connectors, it is possible to reconfigure network connections from a central location. As the telecommunication needs of users have increased, the number of devices and the density with which they are stored in Local Area Networks (LANs) have increased. Adding connective devices, such as cassettes or adapter panel assemblies, to a LAN may place additional strain on the capacity of fiber optic network cabling. In particular, the channel capacity of fiber optic network cabling may be disadvantageously limited by the physical size of the installed connective devices.
Fiber optic cassettes allow for patching of optical data link(s) from a backbone cable to other devices. Fiber optic cassettes are generally adapted to support a plurality of fiber optic adapters for convenient interconnection with fiber optic cables. As is known in the art, the term “adapter” is interchangeable with the term “coupler” and generally refers to a device that facilitates and/or creates a connection between two fiber optic connectors/ferrules, each containing and/or supporting a light carrying fiber medium.
In fiber optic structured cabling systems, fiber optic patching frequently occurs within a component called a sub-rack enclosure. Conventional sub-rack enclosures are box-like structures that include mounting brackets to allow and/or facilitate installation into a rack or cabinet. The sub-rack enclosure typically has a mounting surface that can support a plurality of adapters/couplers. The number of adapters/couplers that may be mounted in a sub-rack enclosure is generally limited by the physical size of the connective devices to be installed, thereby limiting adapter/coupler density.
Accordingly, a need exists for effective mounting panels, systems and methods capable of allowing increased network density. These and other needs are met, and the disadvantages and/or limitations of prior art panels, systems and methods are addressed and/or overcome, by the panels, systems and methods of the present disclosure.